Across the River
by DarkClerk
Summary: Kenzi/Vex. Kenzi is lost in the underworld. Who will bring her home? Set after Season 4. There's just not enough of this ship out there, so I have to fill in the gaps. I don't know how sexy this is going to get sot he rating is set at 'M' just in case.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with this story, including characters. But they are so fun to play with. I respect the almighty copyright and thank the powers that be for letting take their toys off the shelf.

**Across the River - Chapter 1**

Vex hurried across the tarmac, clutching his duffle straps in one hand. The pilot should be here in a few minutes but the wind was cold and he would rather wait inside than on the runway.

Stepping into the hanger and out of the cold, he paused to take a breath. Where was the bloody pilot, anyway? He paced back and forth in frustration. He needed to get out of town. It had all gone sideways- Massimo, his blood oath, Kenzi. . .

Would Kenzi ever be able to forgive him?

"Hello, darling", a voice drawled behind him.

Vex stiffened at the sound.

Evony.

Bollocks.

He turned reluctantly, plastering a stiff smile to his face, "Hello, luv. Fancy meeting you here."

The Morrigan surveyed the planes around them and a theatrical look of hurt passed over her face, "I can't believe you were going to take off without even saying goodbye first."

"Spontaneous sort of thing," He shrugged, "The irresistible call of the open road and all that. Had the urge to see my old stomping grounds."

"Ah," She nodded sagely, "So this has nothing to do with your broken blood oath to me?"

He went still, "What do you mean?"

"You swore you would protect Massimo. Massimo is dead. Ipso Facto, your head is mine." She smiled.

Vex stepped forward, hand raised and Evony's fingers flew up to circle her own throat like a vice. He stared down at her, hissing into her reddening face, "I did everything I could to save your _whelp_- even had him convinced to come to England with me. Until you called."

She made a choking noise and he eased his grip just enough for her to wheeze out, "I was just kidding about your head. Learn to take a joke."

When he just stared at her, she struggled to continue, "Do you think I would have come myself to kill you? I have people for that."

Recognizing the logic, he released her with a quick gesture.

Bending over heavily, she took a desperate breath, yanking the air back into her lungs. It a few minutes before she was able to stand up straight, "You always were so rough, Vexie," She simpered at him, her mused appearance marring the effect.

Not in the mood for games, he frowned at her, "Why did you call Massimo?"

Her jaw worked and she smoothed her hair with one hand. "For nothing, it turns out," Stepping back, she struck a pose against the wing of a G6. "I needed him to fix one little problem and like always, he screwed that up. Kidnapped the doctor and along comes Bo, all stabby when she should be saving the world".

Vex's shoulders slumped. Poor Mo. All he ever wanted was his mummy's love. He almost missed Evony's words as she continued, "Lucky for us the girl stepped in, I suppose. Turns out the little human was good for something after all," She glanced up at the ceiling, bored.

He frowned, "What girl? What are you on about?"

"Bo's little human, what's-her-name, with the destitute goth look," Evony waved a hand, "she threw herself into the Sinbad to shut the gate to Hel."

The pain was immediate, breathtaking. The bag slipped from his fingers.

Evony was still talking, her voice droning on in that light unending sneer, "-two problems solved there- dead little bitch and world saved. Hurrah!" The smirk on her face wavered when he turned to her, "Vexie-"

His hand flew up, holding her in place and her eyes widened in fear, "You," he growled, "you miserable, vicious, used up, old-"

"Hey!" She protested.

Sweeping his hand down, he slammed her into the plane and pulled her back to do it again, and again. When he finally let her fall, she dropped to the ground, a bloody ragdoll. He left her there amid the growing puddle of her blood and stalked out of the hanger.

The airport caretaker took one look at Vex's face and went ghost white.

"Bring me my car," Vex snarled and the man ran, stumbling over his own feet in his haste to obey.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2-

The drive to the Dal was a haze of speed and angry horns, as Vex sliced his way down the interstate back into the city. All the while, his mind churned with the many ways it could be not true. Evony lived to lie. Though what she had to gain from telling him Kenzi was dead, he couldn't fathom. She could be mistaken. The chaos of battle and unreliable sources could have brought her to the wrong conclusion. There were a million ways for it to be incorrect, untrue, Vex reminded himself. He would know anyway, wouldn't he? Some small part of him would know. . .

He pulled up in front of the bar, indifferent to the fire hydrant and the no parking sign. Leaping from his car, he didn't even pause to slam the door shut. He needed to know, now. _It isn't true. It isn't true. It isn't true_, he chanted to himself. The words moving faster and faster in his head, along with his steps until he was running. _Not true. Not true. Not true_. The Mesmer hit the door to the bar room like a battering ram. . . .

The bar was empty but for Bo and Trick. The Succubus sat at a table, head in hands and the sound of her weeping brought him to a standstill.

Vex swayed on his feet. _No, no, no._

Trick glanced up, his hand resting on his granddaughters shoulder and his face bore the weight of a hundred deaths.

Rage filled the Mesmer, "_What happened_?"

Bo glanced up at the sound of his voice, dragging a hand over her tear stained face. When she recognized him, her eyes narrowed, "Vex-"

"Where is Kenzi?" He demanded.

"What do you care?"

"Where is she?!" He screamed.

Bo pushed to her feet, "She's dead!" The succubus shouted back at him and fresh tears slid down her cheeks, "She's gone,". Sobs overtook her and she pressed her face into her hands again.

Trick was at her side instantly, "Bo-" He tried in vain to steer her back towards the table. Giving Vex a cold look, he said, "I think you should leave."

"Did she throw herself into the Sinbad? Is that really what happened?"

Sniffing, Bo rubbed at her eyes and nodded, "Yes. She saved us all."

"She saved us." Vex repeated in a voice of ice, "Isn't that your job? Big bad succubus, defender of the weak, protector of the small." He was shaking with rage, numb and stiff with it. "Why didn't you save _her_?"

"That's not fair!" Trick snapped, "Kenzi chose. She knew it was the only way to shut the gate to Hel. What was Bo supposed to do? It was the only way to save the _world_, Vex."

The Mesmer snarled back, "I would have watched the world _burn_ before I would have let her walk out of it!"

Bo raised her chin, "Well, you weren't here."

He recoiled and she continued, "You ran. Like you always do," she shoved him, two hands against his chest and he fell back, "You let Massimo out of his cage," Another shove, "You betrayed us and her and then you ran." She raised her hands to push him again and he lifted his arm, fingers splayed. She stopped in her tracks with a grunt of rage, "Let me go!"

Trick warned, "Vex-"

Beside him, Bo's eyes had begun to glow with blue fire. She opened her mouth to snarl-

The bar door slammed against stone and Dyson stumbled in, half-carrying Tamsin through the entrance, "A chair!" The wolf demanded.

The light went out of Bo's eyes and she hurried forward to help him. Together, Bo and Dyson lowered the Valkyrie into a seat. "Trick-" The succubus glanced up at her grandfather, "some water?"

He hurried back toward the bar to fetch a glass. Bo touched Tamsin gently on the face, trying to make eye contact, "Is it done?" She asked, a hitch in her voice, "Did you take her to Valhalla?"

Tamsin wouldn't meet her gaze, looking away to stare blankly at the tabletop. She gave the tiniest of head shakes and pressed her lips together.

"What happened?" Bo whispered, eyes full of fear.

Trick slid between them, to press a glass of water into Tamsin's hand. She took it silently, her hands shaking as she pressed the rim to her lips. When she set it down, Dyson laid a hand on her shoulder, "If you need a few minutes-"

"No. She needs to know." Tamsin answered in a rough voice. Finally, she raised her eyes to Bo, and whatever the Succubus saw in the Valkyrie's face filled her eyes with tears.

Bo lowered herself into the chair across from her friend, reaching out she clasped the other woman's hand In a tight grip, "Tell me."

Forgotten by everyone else in the room, Vex watched and listened.

Tamsin drew a breath, "At first, I was afraid. What if I still wasn't worthy? What if I couldn't- but as soon as I took Kenzi up, I knew. I could feel the honored dead calling to her. I flew and flew, holding Kenzi in my arms," Her voice became thin, strained, "She was so small- so light. I had to keep glancing down to make sure she was there. As we crossed the underworld, I felt something pursuing us. Something dark and powerful. I flew as fast as I could-" Her eyes closed, "it wasn't fast enough. I held her but he was so strong. He tore her away from me, cast her down into the lost lands. I tried to follow but he battered me away. I almost fell-"

"Who?" Bo demanded.

Tamsin whispered, "I think it was your father." She broke down, "I'm so sorry, Bo. Kenzi-"

Instantly, Dyson was at her side, his arm around her shoulders as he murmured to her. Leaning into him, Tamsin sobbed.

"So, Kenzi is in the underworld?" Bo asked.

Studying Tamsin's grief-stricken form, Trick nodded grimly, "It sounds that way."

"Then we go in and get her."

"It's not that simple, Bo." The barkeep explained, "The underworld is. . . unknown. Very few Fae have direct knowledge of it and most of them are extinct now. The Una Mens didn't trust their power," He glanced sideways at Vex, "And they were hunted down and executed."

"There has to be a way. There's always a way. Some magical item we have to get, somebody we have to find. We spread whale blubber on our heads and dance naked around a sheaf of wheat-"

"A journey to the underworld isn't hedge magic-"

Vex interrupted coolly, "I know a way."

Trick plodded on as though he hadn't heard, "If we had a Cerberus pup and thirty years, maybe, but-"

"I know a way," Vex repeated, louder.

"So, we find a three headed dog- whatever," Bo answered, "but I won't leave Kenzi down in the dark! I-"

"Are you people bloody deaf?!" Vex shouted, "I know how to get to the sodding underworld, if you'd just shut your yaps and listen!"

Everyone, even Dyson and Tamsin turned toward him, surprised.

"How?" Bo asked.

Vex smirked, "I know where The Hecate is."

Tamsin and Trick both shook their heads. "No," The Valkyrie protested, "No one has seen The Hecate in 600 years. She's dead-"

"There's a difference between dead and retired," Vex answered, "The Hecate didn't die, she just quietly retreated from the world. Didn't like all the new-fangled technology of the fourteenth century or something. The Dark has been helping her keep a low profile in exchange for certain favors. But I know where she lives."

"Who is The Hecate?" Bo demanded.

"A legend," Trick's voice was grave, "A guardian of one of the gates of the underworld. The ancient Greeks worshiped her as the goddess of crossroads and witchcraft. If anyone can help us find Kenzi, it's her." He studied Vex dubiously, "Do you really know where she is?"

"As sure as eggs is eggs."

"Fine," Bo stood and crossed to Vex, "Tell us where we can find this Hecate."

"Oh, no, Succubus- I left Kenzi in your hands once before. Not this time. I'm going with you."

There was a stirring of protest from everyone in the room but Bo gave it voice, "No freaking way. I don't trust you as far as I can throw you," Sneering she leaned toward him, "Wait here. Maybe, we'll call you when we're done."

So trust was the issue, huh? Vex thought, fine.

Reaching into the interior pocket of his jacket, the Mesmer pulled out a switchblade. Dyson moved toward him, claws at the ready, as Vex flicked the blade open and pulled it across his outstretched palm.

Letting the blood from the cut drip onto the hardwood floor, he recited in a steady voice, "I, Vex, last of the Mesmers, Clan of the Dark, swear upon my blood to offer up any assistance required to bring Kenzi back to the world of the living. For the duration of this quest, I pledge my fealty to Bo the Succubus. May any attempt at betrayal result in my slow, painful death."

"Witnessed, bled and bound." Trick answered, looking at Vex with shock in his eyes. When he said the final word, the blood on the floor and the cut began to burn with a radiant light that grew brighter and brighter until they were forced to turn their eyes away. Just when the brilliance became unbearable it disappeared.

The puddle of blood at Vex's feet and the cut on his hand had vanished, leaving behind a thin faint scar.

Into the stunned silence, Bo asked, "Uh. . . what just happened?"

"Vex has given you his binding blood oath." Dyson offered, staring at the Mesmer with the same shocked and unsettled expression as Tamsin and Trick.

"I thought a blood oath was just a really solemn promise, like a pinky-swear."

Trick winced, "The modern blood oath is a pledge of honor. Vex has performed something much older- a binding blood oath."

"What does that mean?"

"I can't break my oath, even if I tried. And if I did try, I would die." He drew a finger across his throat in a dramatic gesture. Giving Bo a tight grin, he curtsied mockingly to her, "Your servant, lady. Now, could we get on with it?"


End file.
